PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
LICO. 882
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO,
3 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
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was in favour of Sungie Ujong, the Chief of which State had the honourable distinction of being styled Elder Brother (Abang) by the Chiefs of the other three States. After the last of the five Rulers were expelled in 1832, the States were governed by their Punghulus as before, with this distinction, that the Chief of Jellabu, being the grandson of the fourth Ruler, assumed the title of Raja, as well as did the Chief of Sri Menanti.
Relations between Sungie Ujong and Rumbowe.
It now remains to trace the effect of the action of Rajah Ali, Syed Sabban, and others in the Lingie River, and thus on the general prosperity of Sungie Ujong, with which country not only were they themselves at enmity during their period of rule, but they encouraged subsequent Punghulus of Rumbowe, and other Chiefs, to start claims to levy duties on the Sungie Ujong trade, for which it is difficult to find any reasonable pretext.
The Lingie River.-It is desirable that there should be a distinct understanding as to the geography of, and of history of events in, the Lingie River. From its position, as the great water way of Sungie Ujong and Rumbowe, this river is the most important channel for carrying down the tin from the mines in the interior.
There is a bar at the mouth of the Lingie River, with about two fathoms of water at high tide. The river is wide and deep as far up as the fork (Sempang) about six miles from the sea. At this place there is an enbranchment. The right or northern branch coming down from the interior through Sungie Ujong, and the left branch coming through Rumbowe, from the Rumbowe hills. The north branch is navigable for large boats for a distance of four or five miles, but the south branch is too shallow for any but small boats.
Sungie Ujong Branch.-Ascending the north or Sungie Ujong Branch about three- quarters of a mile above Sempang is Penkallang Kumpas, on the right bank; one and a half miles on above this, on the right bank, is Sungie Udang; one mile further on is Sungie Surban; another mile further, on the left bank, is Lingie Stockade; a quarter of a mile further is Bukit Tiga, thence one mile further on is Permatang Passir, and a mile further Pengkalang Koondang; a little further is Pengkalang Durian, the residence of the Datu Muda of Lingie. The three last named places collectively form the place or settle- ment known as Lingie, in contradistinction to Qualla Lingie, the station at the mouth of the Lingie River. The river, so far, is navigable for large boats; but, beyond this, it becomes shallow and soon ceases to be navigable for any but small cances.
The Sungie Ujong tin mines are situated about thirty miles beyond Pengkalang Durian.
Rumbowe Branch.-The south or Rumbowe Branch of the river forms the boundary between Rumbowe and Malacca up to Sungie Landoo, above which place it is a mere streamlet, coming down from the Rumbowe hills behind Bandar, the chief town of Lower Rumbowe (it is a mere village with a few wretched wood and leaf houses). From Sempang the river is navigable for boats as far as Sungie Pidass, about five miles up, above which the channel is so shallow, and so overhung and obstructed by trees as to prevent any but very small canoes from passing.
Northern Branch.-It is on the northern branch of this river that Rumbowe has always acted in endeavouring to share the revenues of Sungie Ujong. It is important, therefore, to enquire what the claims of Rumbowe really are in the river, and whether, as is suggested, the claims arise only from the fact of Rumbowe territory lying on one bank of the river, in a certain part of its lower course. If it should, on enquiry, prove that the claims of Rumbowe rest only on this circumstance, it will be difficult to sustain them; us the river being a public way, Sungie Ujong would be entitled to its free use, in the absence of a clear Convention to the contary; and it is not alleged that there is any such Convention.
Alternate Route.—It is said that the tin of Sungie Ujong can be brought to the sca for shipment through the territory of Lookoot by a shorter and cheaper route: but, in the absence of any well established arrangements for governing and protecting such route, there is not sufficient confidence among the traders to enable it to be made use of at present. The Chief of Lookoot is said, however, to be prepared to make roads and to protect the traffic, if countenanced by Government. Until, however, such an arrange. ment is made, the Lingie River will continue to be the channel of communication between the Sungie Ujong tin mines and the sea.
Proceedings on the River,
Colony of Lingie-The lower part of the river does not seem to have been largely inhabited till towards the close of last century; when, about 1783, a colony was formed
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by five Bugghese men, who came there from Rhio at the time of the war between the Rajah Muda of Rhio and his ally Sultan Ibrahim, of Salangore, against the Dutch. The five leaders established themselves with their families on the Sungie Ujong branch, at a place called Permatang Passir, about as far again from the mouth of the river as Sampang, say, ten miles up the river. The Klana of Sungie Ujong appointed one of the five, fnche Ahman, as Chief, under the title of Tuah Campong, that is, elder of the village, a title which afterwards was changed for the more honourable one of Datu of Lingie. The word Datu means the head of a tribe, and is applied to the Chief of a District, it differs little in its signification from the word Pungbulu. Inche Ahman formed trading connections with Malacca merchants, who advanced money and goods to him, so that he soon established a thriving trade. It is not said that the Pungbulu of Rumbowe had any part in the appoint- ment of this Datu, nor, indeed, that Rumbowe had at this time any pretention to interfere. The settlement at Qualla Lingie was founded in 1833 by a number of families, driven out of Langat, by the exactions of the Chiefs of that district of Salangore,
Inche Kattas.-About the begginning of the present century, one Inche Mahomed Attas, commonly called Inche Kattan, a Rumbowe man, finding the place prosperous, came and settled at Lingie, and soon after married one of the Datu's daughters. The word Inche, in its contracted form Ches, is equivalent to our word mister, mistress, and is applied, among Malays, to persons of a rank above the labouring classes. Inche Kattas settled higher up the river, at Penkallang Koondong, with Hadjee Mahomed, who had married another daughter of the Datu. A quarrel, however, arose in the family, and Kattas went back to Permatang Passir. As Datu Ahman became old and disinclined to public affairs, he left the management of his Datuship in the hands of Inche Kattas. This arrangement continued so long that Inche Kattas became known at last as the Datu Muda, lesser or younger Datu, of Lingie. On the death of Datu Ahman, in 1824, Inche Kattas was appointed Datu Muda of Lingie by the Klana of Sungie Ujong and, it is said, by the Punghulu of Rumbowe; there is, however, little authority for this latter statement, but it may be, Kattas being a subject of Rumbowe, that the Punghulu of Rumbowe was consulted on the subject. It is said that the Chiefs of Lingie have always, and they certainly do now, deny any right on the part of the Chiefs of Rumbowe to interfere with them, and have and do acknowledge allegiance to Sungie Ujong alone. The title of Datu Muda is still retained; there is now no Datu of Lingie. It must, however, be added that the Chiefs of Rumbowe do claim a right to Sungie as founded chiefly by Rumbowe men.
Boundaries between Bungie Ujong and Rumbowe.-The boundaries between Sungie Ujong and Rumbowe are unsettled, and the claims of Rumbowe on the northern or Sungie Ujong branch are vehemently asserted in order to give authority to establish posts and levy duties.
For Rumbowe it is cont aded that the whole of the left bank of the Sungie Ujong River above Sempang, and the land between that river and the Rumbowe branch, as far up as a place a little above Penkalang Koondong, on the Sungie Ujong side, belong to Rumbowe; while, on the other hand, for Sungie Ujong, it is alleged that no such claims had ever been made for Rumbowe till Rajah Alli and Seyd Sabban attempted to collect duties at Sempang in 1832, followed by Lebby Kulup and others at a later date.
Judging from the maps and our information as to the boundaries, it would seem to be reasonably clear that Rumbowe comes down along the right bank of the southern branch to Sempang, but how far up the left bank of the northern branch of the river the territory extends is not clear.
It is not improbable that, if the truth were known, neither State cared about or made any claim to the place till the practice of levying duty arose; when, as possession of the land on the bank of the river was the pretext for Rumbowe levying the duty, that State would naturally press its claim to this land. If we may take Newbolt and Begbie as authorities, Lingie depended at its origin on Sungie Ujong and not on Rumbowe, although there were always many Rumbowe people living there.
System of Working the Tin Mines.-The system of working the tin mines in Sungie Ujong at first was as follows:-At each smelting the Klana was to receive three bhars of tin at the low price of 30 dollars a bhar, and 6 dollars were to be paid to the owner of the soil of the mine. This appears to have been changed, as afterwards, before the usurpation of Rajah Alli and Syed Sabban, which appears to be the great turning point of the history of Rumbowe encroachments in Bungie Ujong, the Chiefs made advances. to the miners of money and of opium and rice at high prices, and had a right to buy all the tin produced at a fixed price. The Chiefs, who had received the advances from the Malacca traders, then handed over the tin to them at a price in advance of that at which they took it from the miners. The revenue on the tin was therefore taken in such a way, under either system, that there was no duty levied on the river.
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